Orchids and Ice
by Yukishiro Megumi1
Summary: Will become R rating as story progresses; Zelgadiss is a "heartless sorcerer swordsman" for a damn good reason. A reason he'd like to forget. But the past returns with a vengeance, and he'll question everything he's become soon enough. (Don't worry, thoug
1. Prologue: The Red Burning

Orchids & Ice  
  
A Slayers Fanfic  
  
By Yukishiro Megumi  
  
Disclaimer: I'd say I own them, but I'd probably be besieged by the one thing more terrifying that a hungry Lina: lawyers. So I *don't*. Hear that, Lawyer people?! I DON'T OWN THEM DAMMIT! Heh…maybe Xelloss' shadow should eat them [Shameless plug: The last comment was a reference to AmethystAngel's "The S Files". Go read them, they're funny! And while you're at it, go visit her Hamlet: The Manga site. I guarantee a laugh.]  
  
Warning: If you don't like self-inserts, don't read. This isn't even a real one, since I just smacked my name on the newbie. (I'll admit it, I like Zel lots. But I really was too lazy to make a new name. Honest! Iyaaa! Put down the pitchforks!) And…eto…blood? Not to mention that I don't have a sense of humor. At least that's what I think. If you think otherwise, I appreciate it?  
  
Reviews: I'll make kawaii sad puppy eyes and cry forever and ever if you don't review! Just a sentence will do!  
  
Flames? Or does the author have an allergy to them?: Bring 'em on. They're funnier than my stories.  
  
Now for the fic! IKKUSEI!  
  
His mind drowned. The pain was breaking him in, exerting control over his slightest thoughts and movements. He struggled with all his will, but that too was being smashed and shattered. The mind inside began to fracture. It felt as if hands had invaded his skull, cold hands tearing, ripping, and seizing…  
  
~No, please. Please! I know what you want to do. No!~  
  
His stomach lurched in a tide of nausea, his heart pounded wildly at his chest. The body trembled, the mind held on, yet the hands continued purging and clutching memories. He wanted to reach out with strength he was loosing. They were stealing, yes, stealing him away. Nothing could save him but death alone, and death was what he craved…  
  
~Anything, anything—but don't do this to me!~  
  
With a final vicious separation his mind was sealed, imprisoned outside himself. The red heat spread through cold fingertips, cold veins, and cold eyes. His eyes burned with it, clouding his vision, tinting it crimson…  
  
~The pain! My body, let go of my body! Stop it! STOP!~  
  
From the bloodied blackness above, a sliver of whiteness caught his attention. It bobbed, swayed, riding a breeze he no longer felt. His disembodied consciousness died in bondage as it looked on. The white blur cut through his reddened glare. Throbbing inside him, a command to dance, a loyal puppet on his master's strings…  
  
1 ~Weak. So weak. Must kill…kill…~  
  
The arms jerked. The throat growled. Each beat of his heart, controlled as the rest of his cursed body, sang of the primal urge to destroy. The flash of his blade slid through the noiseless white. There could be no resistance to his master's dance. He felt the familiar resistance of a body against sharpened steel. A snapping crack of pain down his spine returned his dislodged mind to its home, temporarily stunning him. But now…  
  
~Not her. Oh L-sama, not her!~  
  
He collapsed onto the ground as his vision cleared itself of his master's sickening hate. Beside him lay the fruit of Rezo's cruel handiwork, a graceful body inert on the ground. Slender arms shone pale against the blackness, alabaster lain against black velvet. Deep blue- violet eyes drained of the sparkle he lived for, her white hair shone against the dark. The only red remaining glared from his sword edge, dark like the wound near her heart. Cries battered the gates of his throat without relenting. He held her against his chest like a drowning man would. What had he done? What had he done!  
  
Zelgadis screamed…  
  
  
  
Mou! A cliffhanger! What an evil bitch am I! DEAL WITH IT, NO DA!  
  
--Yukishiro Megs 


	2. Chapter 1: Waking Tremors

Orchids & Ice  
  
A Slayers Fanfic  
  
By Yukishiro Megumi  
  
Disclaimer: I'd say I own them, but I'd probably be besieged by the one thing more terrifying that a hungry Lina: lawyers. So I *don't*. Hear that, Lawyer people?! I DON'T OWN THEM DAMMIT! Heh…maybe Xelloss' shadow should eat them [Shameless plug: The last comment was a reference to AmethystAngel's "The S Files". Go read them, they're funny! And while you're at it, go visit her Hamlet: The Manga site. I guarantee a laugh.]  
  
Warning: If you don't like self-inserts, don't read. This isn't even a real one, since I just smacked my name on the newbie. (I'll admit it, I like Zel lots. But I really was too lazy to make a new name. Honest! Iyaaa! Put down the pitchforks!) And…eto…blood? Not to mention that I don't have a sense of humor. At least that's what I think. If you think otherwise, I appreciate it?  
  
Reviews: I'll make kawaii sad puppy eyes and cry forever and ever if you don't review! Just a sentence will do!  
  
Flames? Or does the author have an allergy to them?: Bring 'em on. They're funnier than my stories.  
  
Now for the fic! IKKUSEI!  
  
The chimera sat bolt upright in bed, eyes wide open in half-terror and half- anger. His heart beat wildly out of control as he panted to regain his breath. Beads of sweat wound through wiry, purple hair and trickled down his forehead. Zelgadis compulsively clenched his right hand, the hand that usually wielded a sword. The touch of someone on his shoulder, something he wouldn't have usually felt if it hadn't been for his jumpy nerves, gave him a start.  
  
"Zelgadis-san? Zelgadis-san, are you alright?"  
  
He looked around his bedside with bright aquamarine eyes, chest still heaving. Amelia, her hand on his bare stony shoulder, gazed at him with concern. She stood at the bedside along with Lina and Gourry. A glance out the window at a starry sky told him it was still quite late at night.  
  
"Y-yes," he managed to stammer. "I'm okay."  
  
Lina stared at him in disbelief. "Okay? Just 'okay'?" she demanded. "Listen, Zel no baka, it's gotta be something if you scream loud enough the resurrect a Dark Lord and get us all outta bed at this time of night."  
  
"Geh? I screamed?"  
  
Lina and Gourry nodded.  
  
Amelia, noticing her hand was still on his shoulder, quickly pulled it off with a slight blush. [1] "We thought something had attacked you, so we ran to your room. You...you wouldn't wake up, no matter how hard we shook you. You had this awful look and then you stopped breathing for a moment…." She shuddered. "We had to tell all the other travelers to go back to bed. The innkeeper thought someone had been murdered. Are you *sure* you're alright?"  
  
Her compassion was typical, but it stirred something in him. Something deep inside wanted to scream no. It wanted to break out and release the pent-up grief he held, tell his past to anybody just to relieve itself of the burden. Zelgadis gritted his teeth and concentrated momentarily on calming down. Strength and control; maintain strength and control, a voice echoed in his brain. He mentally checked himself before blurting out anything he wished to conceal. The grimace he wore was replaced by his usual indifferent look.  
  
"Hai, I'm sure," he said with seemingly unruffled tranquility. "You all should go back to bed. Gomen for waking you up unnecessarily." His continued trembling suggested of his unnerved state, but Zelgadis kept it relatively hidden from the others.  
  
Gourry shrugged and smiled in a good-natured, drowsy sort of way. Zel began to think he probably hadn't woken up yet anyway. Lina muttered under her breath about how stubborn Zel was before dragging Gourry out the bedroom door as she left. Amelia, however, lingered before leaving, stopping hesitantly to lean on the end of the bed.  
  
"I can feel your shaking from here, Zelgadis-san, don't pretend you're invincible. Please talk with us if there is something going on."  
  
Zelgadis remained silent, staring at the bed sheets. Amelia saw the muscles of his back tense under his pajama top in an effort to control the spasms. He forced himself to breathe deep and slow to ease it.  
  
"Was it about Akahoushi Rezo?" Amelia pressed him [2]. Her enormous blue eyes were still watery out of concern.  
  
Surprisingly enough, she elicited a wordless nod.  
  
"Do you want to…get it all out? You know, just talk?"  
  
"Iie," he replied bluntly, wiping his forehead with the sleeve of his pajama shirt. He nestled under the covers and closed his tired eyes. Despite his words, Zelgadis' voice sounded softer to her, maybe even more subdued, than usual. "Go to sleep, already. My secrets are mine for a reason, Amelia." He listened to her quiet "Oyasumi, Zelgadis-san" and the dull padding of bare feet as she walked out.  
  
"Oyasumi…I wish," he muttered as he shifted around. Zel sighed resignedly. A solitary tear wound its way through long, dark eyelashes [3], escaping only to trickle down his face and patter upon the pillow. Another shudder passed through him, bringing up a quiet sob that he could no longer restrain. How could he sleep if it meant reliving that one moment so many more times? How could he not sleep if he wanted to see her face again so desperately?  
  
"K'so," whispered Zelgadis hoarsely. "It's killing me...." He trailed off. Underneath a stone chest, a heart still beat in shock from the taste of a nightmare that would not go away.  
  
-TO BE CONTINUED-  
  
  
  
[1] I'm not an Amelia and Zelgadis fan, for reasons I'll elaborate on either in the fic or if you e-mail me about it. Won't go into it right now, though. But I do believe *she* likes him enough. I just think another personality type would suit him better.  
  
[2] Akahoushi Rezo = Rezo the Red Priest, his great- grandfather/grandfather. O.O No comment.  
  
[3] Demo, I LOVE his eyelashes! I had to mention them, really I did! 


	3. Chapter 2a: Internal Warfare?

Orchids & Ice  
  
A Slayers Fanfic  
  
By Yukishiro Megumi  
  
Disclaimer: I'd say I own them, but I'd probably be besieged by the one thing more terrifying that a hungry Lina: lawyers. So I *don't*. Hear that, Lawyer people?! I DON'T OWN THEM DAMMIT! Heh…maybe Xelloss' shadow should eat them [Shameless plug: The last comment was a reference to AmethystAngel's "The S Files". Go read them, they're funny! And while you're at it, go visit her Hamlet: The Manga site. I guarantee a laugh.]  
  
Warning: If you don't like self-inserts, don't read. This isn't even a real one, since I just smacked my name on the newbie. (I'll admit it, I like Zel lots. But I really was too lazy to make a new name. Honest! Iyaaa! Put down the pitchforks!) And…eto…blood? Not to mention that I don't have a sense of humor. At least that's what I think. If you think otherwise, I appreciate it?  
  
Reviews: I'll make kawaii sad puppy eyes and cry forever and ever if you don't review! Just a sentence will do!  
  
Flames? Or does the author have an allergy to them?: Bring 'em on. They're funnier than my stories.  
  
Now for the fic! IKKUSEI!  
  
The morning brought the smells of hams, cheeses, fruits and…wait…ah, yes….  
  
"Coffee," sighed Zel happily. He grinned and gratefully held up his mug for the passing waitress. "Arigato. You just saved my life."  
  
"Um…sure thing," said the passing waitress with befuddlement as a few sunny-side-up eggs whizzed overhead. They were soon followed by two hefty spoonfuls of, oddly enough, whipped cream [1]. Dodging an incoming attack of bacon from above, the waitress hurried off to a more peaceful side of the room that lacked either crossfire or a small war.  
  
"I CLAIMED THAT FIRST, BAKA JELLYFISH-BRAINS, AND YOU KNOW IT!" bellowed Lina, savagely ripping a fat sausage off of Gourry's fork.  
  
"No fair, Lina! You claimed it off *my* plate!" cried Gourry, inhaling two large waffles.  
  
"In the name of Justice, I shall confiscate that juicy—I mean, innocent sausage from your unjust clutches!" Amelia declared, clocking Lina with a nearby water jug and seizing the breakfast item in question. Lina, fangs bared in full Dra-Mata mode, executed an amazing drop kick onto Amelia while snatching the sausage and downing her umpteenth bagel. A few jokers in the back clapped.  
  
Zel deftly moved his head from a large pancake's trajectory with a frown, visibly upset. It was not that he hadn't become accustomed to the "eating" habits faithfully maintained by his friends. They were long familiar to him now and (sadly enough) his evasive maneuvers were all reflexive. That tired, drained feeling had to be getting to him. That was it. He had to exert an unusual amount of effort to even lift his hands, as he observed, and it was all he could do to keep his head from rolling onto his shoulder. He glared accusingly at his cream-colored mug of steaming java.  
  
"Must be the chikuso coffee," he muttered. "It's weaker than water." Discreetly, he sat a little farther back in his chair and flexed his leg muscles to rid them of that funny drained feeling. Nope, he thought inwardly, it still feels strange.  
  
A deathly chill overtook him.  
  
He gave a sharp, startled gasp. It zipped up his spine and overwhelmed his body to the tips of his stone fingers, drawing all breath away. The coffee cup he held shattered on the floor, abruptly released from a rigid grasp [2].  
  
"Shimatta, what the hell's wrong now, Zel?" blurted Lina after swallowing food. "Zel? Zelgadis? Ara…."  
  
Nothing would get a response from him. Arched backwards over the chair and aqua eyes transfixed, he stared at the ceiling, beyond the reach of any outside stimulus. Inside, his lungs seemed to malfunction and it became harder for him to draw breath. Not even a facial muscle twitched. Amelia ran to him, trying to snap him out of the trance.  
  
"Wake up! Oh please be all right, just WAKE UP!" she panicked. As soon as her fingers touched the rocky skin of his hand, she recoiled in shock. "Lina-san, his skin! It's too hot!" She quickly felt his forehead, not even eliciting the usual protest. "He's never usually this hot! He's practically burning up!"  
  
People began to twist around in chairs to see what was causing the disruption, while other merely ignored the scene. The inn-owner, concerned with the image a possible food-poisoning incident would give his humble tavern, hid in the closet before anyone could blame him.  
  
Zel began to tremble uncontrollably, though it seemed he still could not move at will. The chair he sat in began to tilt progressively to the side.  
  
Lina sprang away from her seat. "Gourry, quick!"  
  
"Right, Lina!" exclaimed Gourry.  
  
Lina noted in passing that she hadn't even finished telling him her instructions though he understood. Swiftly positioning himself beside Zelgadis, the blond swordsman easily caught his friend before the chair pitched to the ground completely. Lina motioned for Gourry to lay the stunned, tremoring chimera gently on the ground. Taking off Zel's long beige cloak, she fashioned a makeshift pillow for his head. Amelia fluttered nearby in a state of utter worry, abandoning her food for her (perceived) itoshii's side. By this time, all available, functioning eyes in the inn were on them.  
  
Gourry crouched down lower over Zel's head with a puzzled expression. "Lina? I think he's saying something, but it's not coming out." Surely enough, the chimera seemed to be silently mouthing syllables, or at least trying to. He pushed long golden locks behind his ears. "Say, you read what that Rubia chick was saying at What's-his-face's place last time. Can you do it again?"  
  
Lina's hackles rose with the addition of the word "chick" to Rubia [3], but she reluctantly restrained her fist. He was, amazingly, right in assuming she could lip-read. "I'll give it a shot…." Her brows knitted together in concentration. "He keeps saying 'gomen', though I have no clue why he's apologizing. Wait…now it's something else…'ai'…ai? Just ai? Aha, he's saying something more…'forever…aishiteru'!" Lina blinked in shock, speechless. Was the chimera-boy professing his love for her? Granted she was beautiful, talented, and a sorcery genius, but her heart was not Zel's—  
  
"…Megumi…," he choked before falling completely unconscious. (AN: Houston, we have an insert….)  
  
Oh, okay, it was some other girl.  
  
Some other girl.  
  
Wait.  
  
Zel?  
  
And another girl?  
  
Lina prodded Amelia's shoulder. "Anou, Amelia. Has he ever mentioned a 'Megumi' to you in any of your conversations?"  
  
Amelia sniffed. "Why would he when he's attracted to the justice- loving heart of another?"  
  
Lina sweatdropped. "Eh? I wasn't talking about *dream* conversations, kid, I meant *real* ones. So never mind. But who is she? Why did he mumble that name when he's in such pain? What the hell is he doing in pain anyway?"  
  
"Now that's not a secret, Lina-san!" exclaimed Xelloss, usual genki smile plastered to his face.  
  
The group, including the curious masses of the breakfasting inn-goers (and except for Gourry, who was making bunny shadows on the wall with glee), all facefaulted while Lina snared the Mazoku in a very scary-looking headlock. A very scary-looking, chiropractic help-inducing headlock. Even though Xelloss probably liked it, masochist that he was, reflected Amelia.  
  
"WHYINHELLCAN'TYOUJUSTWALKINLIKENORMALPEOPLEYOUBAKA?!" ranted Lina [4]. She allowed him to escape her grip when she noticed his grinning face was turning blue. "And because *you* seem to know what's going on here, you psychopathic bakayarou fruitcake, YOU will explain everything. Every. Single. Detail." She proceeded to throttle him, turning him alternating shades of red and purple. He finally managed to pry murderous gloved fingers from around his neck.  
  
"Lina-san, first of all you know I'm not normal," he protested. Xelloss waited for Zel's typical comment about old news. He blinked, which took talent since his eyes were already closed. "Ara, he must be worse than I thought, not even one sarcastic peep…. Secondly, Zel-kun's illness is due to an obscure form of black magic being used by a powerful spell caster, who is getting nearer. He will be progressively worse since this spell becomes more concentrated around an object close by, no da [5]. Third, it would seem Zelgadis-kun is having flashbacks about his past at the moment, and from the yummy vibes I'm getting—"  
  
Gourry made a surprised face. "Xelloss? What are *you* doing here?"  
  
Xelloss ignored this."—they are not pleasant in the least…"  
  
-TO BE CONTINUED-  
  
[1] One comment: ORO?!!  
  
[2] Don't worry, fans of Zel's ever-present coffee mug! I'll find another one for him! ^_^  
  
[3] She's so obviously in love with poor Gourry. So obvious.  
  
[4] Ahem. It reads: Why in hell can't you just walk in like normal people, you baka?!  
  
[5] Okay, okay, so it was a blatant Chichirri comparison, omae o korosu! ::waves gun around Heero style:: 


	4. Chapter 2b: Surrender of Self

Orchids & Ice  
  
A Slayers Fanfic  
  
By Yukishiro Megumi  
  
Disclaimer: I'd say I own them, but I'd probably be besieged by the one thing more terrifying that a hungry Lina: lawyers. So I *don't*. Hear that, Lawyer people?! I DON'T OWN THEM DAMMIT! Heh…maybe Xelloss' shadow should eat them [Shameless plug: The last comment was a reference to AmethystAngel's "The S Files". Go read them, they're funny! And while you're at it, go visit her Hamlet: The Manga site. I guarantee a laugh.]  
  
Warning: If you don't like self-inserts, don't read. This isn't even a real one, since I just smacked my name on the newbie. (I'll admit it, I like Zel lots. But I really was too lazy to make a new name. Honest! Iyaaa! Put down the pitchforks!) And…eto…blood? Not to mention that I don't have a sense of humor. At least that's what I think. If you think otherwise, I appreciate it?  
  
Reviews: I'll make kawaii sad puppy eyes and cry forever and ever if you don't review! Just a sentence will do!  
  
Flames? Or does the author have an allergy to them?: Bring 'em on. They're funnier than my stories.  
  
Now for the fic! IKKUSEI!  
  
~Where in hell am I?~  
  
Zelgadis could hear the faint lapping of miniature waves on the edges of a pond, though his eyes could see no such thing. Pine trees perfumed heavy tendrils of fog. Everything seemed lit from within; he could see the details of his surroundings without light to aid him. At his feet, a ruby amulet, large and twinkling like the blood moon. Stony fingers lifted it from a bed of pine needles and curling, twisting ferns.  
  
~Wait, what is my pin doing off my cloak? Itai!~  
  
The strong clasp on its back snapped forward viciously and unexpectedly, startling the young chimera, who dropped it onto the springy forest floor. He watched the palm of his hand where it had lain in morbid fascination. Blackish-red blood seeped from a large puncture on his stony hand, though he felt no pain. His eyes grew wider as the flow became fatal in volume, splashing in shimmering fountains to the ground. Zelgadis calmly grasped his wounded hand in his left hand, but the blood refused to stop. Neither did the guilt.  
  
~Maybe if I let go, I will die here…and repay the betrayal, itoshii~  
  
The puddles of life's fluid grew deeper around his bare feet, warm against his toes. A honey-sweet smile, born of growing madness and embittered by rising desperation, and he released his right hand from the left's grasp. The smile did not fade with the weakness he began to feel, dizziness creeping up behind him like an assassin, and twice as dangerous. It did not fade as the puddle gathered itself, shaping itself into a slim form with dagger-like claws and feminine curves. The blood being solidified behind him and changed colors from the rusty crimsons to whites and pale peaches, and deep violet. The misplaced smile upon his face, morbidly handsome in an odd fashion, began to look more tragic in nature.  
  
~Megumi? Is that you? I'm guilty, ne? Just this once, honey, onegai…catch me. Megumi…~  
  
The claws had already began to sink into his back.  
  
  
  
::cries:: I *know* it's short! It's a kinda "bridge" thingy! The next one isn't so short, minna-san!! 


	5. Chapter 3: Disease of Nightmares

Orchids & Ice  
  
A Slayers Fanfic  
  
By Yukishiro Megumi  
  
Disclaimer: I'd say I own them, but I'd probably be besieged by the one thing more terrifying that a hungry Lina: lawyers. So I *don't*. Hear that, Lawyer people?! I DON'T OWN THEM DAMMIT! Heh…maybe Xelloss' shadow should eat them [Shameless plug: The last comment was a reference to AmethystAngel's "The S Files". Go read them, they're funny! And while you're at it, go visit her Hamlet: The Manga site. I guarantee a laugh.]  
  
Warning: If you don't like self-inserts, don't read. This isn't even a real one, since I just smacked my name on the newbie. (I'll admit it, I like Zel lots. But I really was too lazy to make a new name. Honest! Iyaaa! Put down the pitchforks!) And…eto…blood? Not to mention that I don't have a sense of humor. At least that's what I think. If you think otherwise, I appreciate it?  
  
Reviews: I'll make kawaii sad puppy eyes and cry forever and ever if you don't review! Just a sentence will do!  
  
Flames? Or does the author have an allergy to them?: Bring 'em on. They're funnier than my stories.  
  
Now for the fic! IKKUSEI!  
  
Amelia snatched the edge of the General-Priest's cloak. "You know her? And why Zel dumped her?"  
  
Feeling slightly nauseated by the waves of general genki-ness rolling off of Amelia Xelloss' smiled twitched imperceptibly. "Good heavens no, he didn't "dump" her. It was significantly more complicated than that." He winked. "As for knowing her, all I can say is sore wa, himitsu desu [1]! But it has nothing to do with Xellas Metallium-sama directly this time, though I was ordered to hang around."  
  
"You mean…this time you…got *ordered* to piss me off, Fruitcake? [2]" came a hoarse voice from the floor.  
  
"Zel," gasped Amelia. "Are you alright?"  
  
"I've been better," he said wryly. Wincing at the pain wracking his frame, he attempted to sit up but failed before he had even lifted his head off the wood floor. "K'so, I thought I was dead." He looked bewilderedly at the people around him. "Oh no. Why'd I have to go and make a damn fool of myself…."  
  
"Oi, Zel," remarked Gourry amiably. "Who's this Mamigu… no… Migemu… wait… Megumi person you kept mumbling about?"  
  
"WHAT?!" Zel's eyes widened with shock. "I said 'Megumi'?"  
  
"Yup, and you even added an 'aishiteru' for good measure, Mister I- can't-tell-you-any-of-my-secrets-or-I'll-die-of-humiliation," Lina dryly remarked. "You're worse than Xelloss."  
  
"Eh? He didn't...didn't tell you?"  
  
"Not a peep about it."  
  
Zel shut his eyes against impending nausea, laying a limp arm across his forehead. "Maybe he's the one who's sick." He heard Xelloss snort. The nausea mercifully subsided. "I suppose this engenders an explanation, ne?"  
  
The entire group nodded in unison. Zel sweatdropped.  
  
"Honestly, am I really that bad? [3]"  
  
Repeat performance.  
  
He sighed. "Privacy, please?"  
  
Amelia herded the mass of curious on-lookers back to their respective tables then hustled her way back to Zelgadis. He struggled to get upright, only barely managing to stay vertical and on his feet. Lina and Gourry, positioning themselves as supports under his shoulders, aided him in gradually climbing the stairs. Each footfall brought a grimace and even Lina's well-meaning encouragement made him wince involuntarily out of pain.  
  
"Don't worry, we're almost there, Zel-san. Come on, keep moving, you're getting there," said Amelia. Zel suppressed a smile of gratitude as he felt the slender shoulder of the red-headed sorceress rise to support him, the blonde swordsman also rising to the occasion and helping him up the stairs.  
  
"Getting…there…" he echoed faintly. The borders of his mind became fuzzy again as he began to black out.  
  
Getting there. For everyone else's sake, he sure as hell hoped so.  
  
-TO BE CONTINUED-  
  
[1] Here's another translation coming at ya: "Sore wa, himitsu desu"= Now that is a secret! Namely, Xelloss' catch phrase.  
  
[2] Now this is a *different* shameless plug. The "Fruitcake" nickname for Xelloss comes from the Queen of Swords' wickedly funny spoof of the Star Wars trilogy. The names are just as hysterical: Star Wars: Men In Tights; Star Wars: The Mazoku Strike Back; Star Wars: Return of the Blind-Eye… Go read these too, dammit!  
  
[3] ::nods:: Aa, Zel-kun, you most certainly are. 


End file.
